More than a decade ago, McQuillar was arrested on a similar charge. He was sentenced to five years in prison on Nov. 27, 2005, for criminal attempt to commit first-degree assault and other charges after he fired a gun at someone in Hartford and missed, Boisvert said.

In October of 1995, McQuillar was the victim of gunfire. When he was 18, he was shot in the chest and stomach while riding a bicycle on Liberty Street, according to Courant archives.